Bofors case: Crucial hearing in SC on Friday
New Delhi, Oct 10: The Supreme Court is likely to hear on Friday the politically-sensitive Rs 64 crore Bofors pay-off case in which the CBI earlier this year filed appeal after 12-year delay against the Delhi High Court decision quashing charges against all the accused.
The apex court will also hear a BJP leader and advocate Ajay Agrawal, who is pursuing the matter for over a decade, and has been asked by it to explain his locus in filing petition as a third party.
Agrawal, who contested the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Rae Bareli against the then Congress president Sonia Gandhi, has filed appeal against May 31, 2005 judgement of the Delhi High Court.
The matter has been listed for hearing on October 12 before the bench comprising Justices R Banumathi and Indira Banerjee.
During the hearing on January 16, the top court had asked Agrawal to explain his locus in filing the appeal and satisfy it as to how the matter could be entertained at the instance of a third party.
The CBI had filed the appeal on February 2 this year.
Before the 2005 verdict of Justice R S Sodhi (since retired), another judge of the Delhi High Court, retired Justice J D Kapoor, had on February 4, 2004, exonerated the late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi in the case and directed the framing of charge of forgery under section 465 of the IPC against Bofors company.
The Rs 1,437-crore deal between India and Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors for the supply of 400 155mm Howitzer guns for the Indian Army was entered into on March 24, 1986.
Swedish Radio on April 16, 1987, had claimed that the company had paid bribes to top Indian politicians and defence personnel.
The CBI on January 22, 1990 had registered the FIR for alleged offences of criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery under the Indian Penal Code and other sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act against Martin Ardbo, the then president of AB Bofors, alleged middleman Win Chadda and the Hinduja brothers.
It had alleged that certain public servants and private persons in India and abroad had entered into a criminal conspiracy between 1982 and 1987 in pursuance of which the offences of bribery, corruption, cheating and forgery were committed.
The first charge sheet in the case was filed on October 22, 1999 against Chadda, Ottavio Quattrocchi, the then defence secretary S K Bhatnagar, Ardbo and the Bofors company.
A supplementary charge sheet was filed against the Hinduja brothers on October 9, 2000.
A special CBI court in Delhi on March 4, 2011, had discharged Quattrocchi from the case saying the country could not afford to spend hard-earned money on his extradition which had already cost Rs 250 crore.
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Punjab: Blast near army cantt area in Amritsar, hours after explosion in Jalandhar
Chandigarh (PTI): An explosion occurred near the army cantonment area in Khasa late Tuesday night in Punjab's Amritsar, the second such incident which took place around three hours after a blast outside the headquarters of the Border Security Force's Punjab Frontier in Jalandhar.
According to the police, an investigation into both blast incidents is currently underway, and no injuries have been reported.
The first explosion happened around 8 pm in Jalandhar, while the second blast occurred at approximately 11 pm in Amritsar.
Amritsar (Rural) Senior Superintendent of Police Suhail Mir Qasim stated that police received reports of a loud sound at around 11 pm on a road in Khasa. "Our teams arrived on the scene immediately," he said.
Preliminary inspections indicated that someone had thrown an explosive device towards the boundary wall, leading to the explosion, according to the SSP.
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Police mentioned that a piece of a tin sheet covering the boundary wall had fallen as a result of the blast.
Following the explosion, a team of forensic and bomb disposal squad visited the site to collect samples.
Amritsar Rural Superintendent of Police Aditya S. Warrier, who also visited the scene, confirmed that further investigations are ongoing. Police added that a team of army officials also assessed the situation, after which the area was cordoned off.
CCTV footage from the vicinity shows the explosion occurring at night. A local villager reported that his family was awakened by the loud sound and came outside their home to see what had happened.
Before the Amritsar explosion, a blast took place outside the headquarters of the Border Security Force's Punjab Frontier in Jalandhar district around 8 pm on Tuesday, causing panic in the area.
CCTV footage captured the explosion, which resulted in a cloud of smoke. An unidentified man was seen running for cover following the blast.
The blast ripped apart a scooter, damaged a traffic signal pole and windowpanes of a nearby shop. Locals recounted that the scooter, which was parked outside the BSF headquarters, Punjab Frontier, caught fire shortly after a loud sound. It belonged to Gurpreet Singh, who regularly delivers parcels in the area.
Talking to reporters on Tuesday night, one of Gurpreet's relatives said that the scooter caught fire as he was approaching it. He immediately called his father and informed him about the incident.
Jalandhar Police Commissioner Dhanpreet Kaur confirmed to reporters late Tuesday that an Activa scooter parked near the gate caught fire suddenly. She stated that Gurpreet is fully cooperating with the investigation.
Witnesses nearby reported hearing a loud sound following the explosion.
On April 27, an explosion occurred at a freight corridor rail track in Shambhu in Patiala. Police had arrested four members of a pro-Khalistan terror module, backed by Pakistan's ISI, for the blast.
In light of these incidents, opposition parties have condemned the AAP government for its handling of the situation.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal criticised Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who also holds the home portfolio, over the recent blasts.
"Three blasts in 10 days, two in a single day, May 5: Jalandhar outside BSF headquarters and Sri Amritsar Sahib Army area, April 27: Rajpura rail track. Continued intelligence failures and the collapse of law and order are a matter of grave concern. Chief Minister @BhagwantMann, who is also the state Home Minister, is busy with mimicry and cheap politics. He has forfeited the right to remain in office," Badal said in a post on X.
Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring also slammed the Mann government over the two blasts.
"Back-to-back blasts have shaken Punjab. Yesterday in Jalandhar, and now near Khasa Camp in Amritsar, this is deeply alarming. Who is trying to destabilise our state? Why has the Punjab Government failed to prevent such incidents? What is the Government of India doing? Repeated lapses point to a serious breakdown of intelligence and security. Punjab's peace cannot be compromised. We demand accountability and immediate action," Warring said in a post on X.
